‘Choose Life’ plates would fund Right to Life through the Secretary of State

Among the legislation scheduled for review Tuesday by the Michigan Senate Transportation Committee is Senate Bill No. 600, which would require the Secretary of State to develop a plate whose proceeds would support the Right to Life of Michigan Fund in the state treasury.

According to Right to Life of Michigan: “Funds generated by the sale of ‘Choose Life’ plates in Michigan will be distributed to pregnancy resource centers and other prolife entities providing assistance to pregnant girls and women.”

There is no pro-choice alternative being considered.

A Slate legal columnist examined the First Amendment issues and concluded,

When the state gives license plates to certain private organizations to broadcast their messages, is it more like the state is talking (akin to a public service announcement) or more like it’s allowing private citizen to talk (like they would in a public square)? The former is constitutional, but the latter may well be censorship.

But Right to Life doesn’t like one-sided issues, remember? They sued Governor Granholm for the stem-cell research petition that was found on Michigan.gov:

The Ann Arbor-based Thomas More Law Center filed suit Aug. 9 in federal court in Lansing on behalf of the Lansing Guild of the Catholic Medical Association, Flint-Area Right To Life and Right To Life-Lifespan. The groups claim Granholm, using public resources, discriminated against people who oppose embryonic stem cell research.